Callaway Steelhead XR Irons Review – Fine Combination Performance

This is my full review of the Callaway Steelhead XR irons. Just like Callaway did with the Big Bertha lines and others, they’ve returned the Steelhead to the market, remade with modern performance and features.

Want a high-resolution look at the Steelhead XR irons? Click on the composite image at the top of the page and navigate the photos.

What are the reviews like?

The Steelhead XR iron has been received extremely well.

It currently has an average review score of about 4.8/5 on Amazon (when you don’t include the 1-star reviews of people that received one individual iron instead of the set), 4.8/5 on the official Callaway website (132 reviews, 98% recommended) and a perfect 5 stars on Global Golf.

What are the features?

Face Cup Technology

This increases ball speed all across the face for an overall distance increase.

Steel-Infused Polyurethane Layer

Positioned behind the lower portion of the face is a bar of steel-infused soft urethane, which absorbs unwanted vibration for improved feel.

The integration of steel into the urethane adds weight, which lowers the center of gravity (CG) of the head, leading to higher launch and greater ball speeds when the ball impacts the lower portion of the face.

Hollow Bore-Thru Hosel Design

The hollow bore-thru hosel design saves significant weight that’s repositioned in strategic places in the head to create more forgiveness and an easier launch.

Progressive Center of Gravity Positioning

Easy launch and long carry in the long irons, easy launch and keen control in the middle irons, and lower launch and higher spin in the short irons are all the result of a strategically-positioned CG throughout the set.

Stock Info

The Steelhead XR irons come stock with the True Temper XP 95 Stepless shaft in steel or the Matrix F15 in graphite.

Several premium shafts are available at no upcharge, and they are:

KBS Tour-V

KBS Tour-V 90

True Temper XP 95

True Temper Speed Step 80

MRC Fubuki AT 50/55/60

UST Recoil 450/460

UST Recoil 660/680

MRC Bassara 50 (ladies)

Below are the specs of the irons. Shaft specs can be found on the Callaway website. Click to enlarge.

Callaway Steelhead XR Irons Specs

How do these irons perform?

Distance/Distance Control

The Steelhead XR irons are long — definitely one of the longest irons I’ve tested.

Carry distance in particular is superb, and this is big because the higher you can get the ball coming into the greens and the softer you can get it to land, the more control you have. The Steelhead XR irons are awesome in this regard.

During my testing I found distance to be predictable and repeatable, even on mis-hits. Mis-hits see minimal loss in ball speed.

Some people have reported distance gains of a whole club or more with minimal reduction in launch angle.

Forgiveness

As you might have expected, the Steelhead XR irons are extremely forgiving.

It’s definitely up there among the most forgiving irons I’ve ever tested. The sweet spot is slightly bigger than in last year’s XR iron, after all.

My mis-hits never strayed more than about 9 yards or so from my sweet-spot distance, and because of the offset, my bad swings that should have resulted in pretty ugly shapes didn’t end up too far off the green either way.

The downside of the superb forgiveness is reduced workability, meaning shot shaping isn’t the easiest thing with these irons, although it can still be managed to an extent.

Playability

These are no doubt one of the easiest irons for higher handicappers to play. They’re very friendly towards slower swingers, and they’re super easy out of trouble lies.

They have no problems handling fairway bunkers and light rough; even in heavier rough they’re relatively easy to get up in the air and fly straight.

What about look, sound and feel?

The Look

Starting with the function, the offset is standard for a Callaway game-improvement iron; not excessive but not negligible either. The top line is quite thick, as is the sole. The head from heel to toe is long.

Overall, the look is what you would expect for a game-improvement iron that inspires confidence at address.

In terms of aesthetics, the cavity badge design doesn’t stray too far from the usual Callaway look, but unlike a lot of their other offerings, the Steelhead XR keeps flashy bright colours to a minimum.

The “Steelhead” logo on the badge has a holographic sheen, which is a cool touch.

The Sound & Feel

One thing I found with the Steelhead XR irons is that they sound and feel pretty much the same over most of the face, save the extreme end of the toe or heel.

This doesn’t surprise me considering the fact that the face is hollow and the steel-infused polyurethane layer (touched on above) dampens the vibrations in the club.

Checking out eBay is a must when looking online, as they usually have deals for both new and used sets that you just can’t beat! The links on this review will take you to all the relevant listings.

Summary & Conclusion

The Steelhead XR irons sure have come a long way since the Steelhead X16s of many years ago.

They are perfect for weekend warriors, mid-to-high handicappers and beginners looking for a top-quality iron that’s good-looking, long, forgiving out of a wide variety of lies, and that won’t break the bank.

With that said, they’re probably not ideal for skilled golfers who appreciate feel, feedback, workability and a slimmer profile.

Do take good care of these irons because the chrome finish scuffs easily.

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2 Comments

Bryan K.July 9, 2019

I went from Wilson Pi5’s with TruTemper Dynamic Gold R300 steel shafts that I had been playing, and enjoying for many years to the Callaway Steelhead XR irons with the KBS Tour 90 shafts because it offered a much thinner top line than many of the other game improvement irons that I looked at and matched my Pi5’s 5 iron in swing weight as measured by a professional fitter. I am looking forward to the added distance and increased forgiveness that they should offer over the Pi5’s which have a much smaller sweet spot. So many of the game improvement irons did not fit my eye with their extremely thick top lines and soles as well as much more head set back than I wanted in an iron. I tried the new Wilson D7 iron demos and could not get past their added club head thickness and sole thickness, resulting in a much heavier club.

So you haven’t put them to the test on the golf course yet. Definitely let us know how it goes with them. I also dislike thick top lines and soles, both for aesthetic reasons and because I tend to play worse with them.